By Carly Stagg
A three-headed ostrich dances in the mist while Fred the blue cow hangs out behind the brewery, getting drunk and eating carrots. Suddenly the peace is shattered by the Earl of Bengalbury, a cannibal who whacks her on the head when she is not writing.
In the world of this talented young writer, even writer’s block can be inspiring.
Twelve year-old Katya Carter wrote the story about what she calls “the demons in her head” that help her write. The Glashan public school student is one of five Ottawa-area youths being recognized at this year’s In Honour Of… awards, put on by the Multicultural Artists in Schools and Community (MASC) organization.
The unique and energetic young girl with the lop-sided grin is proud that she does not fit into the teeny-bopper stereotype.
“I am weird,” she said. “I will write a nice fluffy fairy tale story and then go play some violent videogames.”
This is not Carter’s first exposure to MASC. In grade five her teacher selected her to attend MASC’s Young Authors and Illustrators conference where she got to rub elbows with a famous author or two.
Carter’s father Robert once sent his daughter’s work to some university psychologists, where he learned that his daughter, who is now in grade seven, was writing at a first-year university level.
“I was shocked,” Robert Carter said. “I knew she was a good writer but I had no idea.”
Those talents were not discovered until two years ago.
“I started really writing in grade five,” she said. “Before that, writing was my most difficult subject.”
It took a few years of misery and switching schools for Carter to learn that she had attention deficit disorder. She found teachers at Cambridge elementary school who supported and encouraged her and they nominated her for the award. Carter graduated from the school last year.
MASC is an organization dedicated to bringing artists and performers into schools in this region.
“It’s a unique opportunity to recognize how important arts education is because a lot of time this work is quite invisible to the public,” said MASC community coordinator Jen Suttor. “A lot of adults don’t know just how important it is for young people to be having creative arts experiences.”
As part of her award, Carter will be paired with local writer and Globe and Mail columnist Roy MacGregor as a mentor. MacGregor is also a popular children’s writer and coincidentally, one of Carter’s favourites.
“That was really, really freaky,” Carter said of the day she learned of the mentorship. “ I almost did the teeny-bopper thing, jumping up and down, screaming.”
MacGregor has done a lot of work with children’s literacy programs in the past, however this is his first time doing a one-on-one mentorship.
“I am probably as nervous and excited as Katya,” he said.
“I’ve heard that she is quite a good young writer, very enthusiastic.”
Carter is very humble of her talents.
“I want to be an actress or an author one day, but I will probably end up flipping burgers or something.”